Any Other Way
by Liz Hollow
Summary: After years without contact with any of her friends, Serena runs into Trevor while traveling for work. Painful memories from her past resurface, and she is forced to isolate herself from everyone and everything in order to protect herself from the past.


**Any Other Way**

It was so like them to throw me headfirst into a city with which I was unfamiliar and expect me to find my way to the hotel.

Of course, it was so like me to assure them that, no, no, I really didn't need a guide to come with me because I was perfectly capable of finding it on my own.

Well, I didn't really have a choice now but to try to find my way on my own. To call and ask for a guide at this point would be admitting defeat, and if there was anything that I didn't do, it was just that. Of course, it didn't help that no one here spoke my native language, so I couldn't exactly ask any random pedestrians for help… but that didn't mean I going to call the agency. No way.

The city to which I had been sent for work, Hearthome City, wasn't bigger than Lumiose. I couldn't even think of many places as big as Lumiose. Navigating a smaller city like this should have been simple, yet I wandered the streets with no sense of direction, passing hotel after hotel, none of which held my reservation.

I dragged my suitcase behind me, the sound of it clicking against the cobblestone beginning to drive me mad as I continued. I didn't think the hotel was that far from the bus station…

I turned too quickly on my heel, spinning around and hoping that maybe retracing my steps would help me not get lost—and, if all else failed, I could just book a night at a different hotel and call the agency later to let them know. But when I turned, I bumped right into someone, and I dropped the handle of my suitcase in surprise.

"Sorry, sorry," I said in the little bit of Sinnoh's language I knew, leaning down to pick up my bag. A much larger hand had already grasped the handle, though, and I stood up just as the man did. He smiled at me, something surprisingly familiar about those gray eyes as we looked at each other.

_I'll see you next week, right, Serena?_

I pushed the thought away, taking my suitcase from him. There was no way that this person was who I thought he was. For one thing, where was his bowl haircut to which I had grown accustomed? Sure, it was the same shade of copper that I remembered, but that _haircut_—there was no way he would let it go.

Then again, it had been years since I last saw him. He was bound to abandon his childhood hairstyle for something a bit more mature, right? I had.

But why was he _here? _What were the chances?

"Trev?" I asked in my native dialect, anyway, and the man's eyebrows raised. "Trevor? It's me, Serena… er, S-kins."

The look of confusion made me second guess myself, and I raised my hand to indicate a mistake. Instead of leaving, as I was sure he would, he grabbed my hand and laughed. His hand was surprisingly big, at least compared to how I remembered it from that one time ours met before. Was it possible that this was true—that the little boy I once knew had become this man with big hands and short hair?

"Wow! Serena! It _is_ you!" When he glanced at our hands, he quickly released mine, and his cheeks turned a shade darker. "You look different."

"Me? No way, look at you, Trev! You look amazing," I told him, his cheeks darkening again. I smiled, glad to see that not much had really changed—he was still kind of adorable in that dork-ish sort of way.

_She's gone, Serena. Stop, Serena, there's nothing you can do—she's gone!_

"Serena. Hey, Serena! Are you okay?"

I blinked, pulling myself out of my thoughts and staring at Trevor again. "I'm fine," I assured him, my grip tightening on my suitcase handle. "I was just thinking how it's been such a long time. I've really… I've missed you, Trevor. You've been busy gathering data for the Pokédex, haven't you? That's why you're in Sinnoh, right?"

He nodded, taking out his Pokédex and holding it out towards me. "For old times' sake?"

It had been a long time since I had even taken my Pokédex out of my bag, and I had to reach into my purse's depths to find it. I knew the result even before each device had turned on, and I was surprised to see that he appeared a little disappointed at his victory. Where I had soared as a child, he flew now.

"Professor Sycamore asked me to travel to the other regions. I've been mostly researching Mega Evolution for him, but I've continued to fill the Pokédex. There are a lot of Pokémon that I know I haven't encountered—and I probably never will…" He sighed, shaking his head and smiling at me. It was always nice to see his smile. "Anyway, what brings you here?"

I blushed. I wasn't sure why, but I didn't want to share the details of my visit with him; it was embarrassing, seeing as we were childhood friends and all.

"Oh, just… um, work," I settled on saying, shifting my suitcase from one of my hands to the other. "I was just trying to find my hotel. Do you know where… I don't even know how to say the name." I reached into my pocket to pull my hotel reservation out, pointing to the name at the top of the printout. "This place. Do you know where this is?"

"Yeah, it's just next to the bus station," Trevor said, jabbing a thumb back.

Of course it was. Seriously.

"Come on, I'll walk you there." He gestured for me to follow him, the sound of my suitcase's wheels against the cobblestone not so grating now. "Are you busy tonight? We can catch up or something… if you have time or want to."

_You were supposed to be there, weren't you?_

"Sorry." My grip tightened even more on my suitcase handle as I apologized, knowing well that I really had no reason to refuse his offer. I liked Trevor. He was probably the most level-headed person I ever met, but even he had become someone brave and empathetic during his journey. He was enjoyable to be around, anyway, and it _had_ been a long time since I had seen him.

But I couldn't. Sure… it was nice to see him, but part of this was just too painful to relive.

"I actually have to get in contact with my work and set some stuff up, and I'll probably go to bed early since I have to wake up early tomorrow," I lied. I wasn't being picked up until noon, and a two-second phone call was really all I needed. _I'm here, made it safely, okay, bye._ Then I would sit on the bed and watch television for the rest of the day since I never had time otherwise.

I wasn't trying to be antisocial, either. I didn't believe in that word.

"Oh, no problem. I'm in Hearthome for another week if you have some time later. I mean, you have to eat some time, right? To put it another way, will you have time for dinner at some point while you're here?" he asked, and I lowered my gaze, unable to look at him any longer. He tone was so innocuous—so like him.

"Trevs, I'm sorry. I leave the day after tomorrow, and I'm working all day tomorrow.…" This wasn't a complete lie, at least. I _was_ leaving the day after tomorrow. Of course, I was sure to have time to eat dinner tomorrow night, but…

I looked at him again, and he nodded disappointedly, if not dejectedly. What was wrong with me? Trevor was the nicest guy I had ever met—no, the nicest _person_. If I had to make excuses not to sit down and talk with him, there had to be something the matter with _me_. Nothing was going to happen. Nothing could go wrong.

_I heard that Champion Serena is lucky to be alive._

It had just been so long since I heard those voices in my head…

Trevor stopped suddenly, and I could practically hear the screech of my shoes on the pavement as I stopped beside him. He gestured to the building in front of him, and I squinted up at the sign above the doorway. It was no wonder that I had walked right past it considering how high up it was.

"Here we are," Trevor said, his outstretched hand retreating back to his side.

"Thanks, Trevor. I'm so happy that I ran into you. I wish we had more time together," I told him, but I had a feeling that my tone came off insincere. I panicked for a moment, guilt catching up with me, and hastily reached into my purse pocket. "Do you still have the same Holo Caster ID, Trev? I changed mine."

"Oh." He held up the object dangling from the lanyard around his neck. Ha, not even that had changed. "No, mine is different, too."

We pointed our devices at each other, and there was a quick succession of beeps. "Great." I pocketed my Holo Caster again and smiled at my old friend. Really, what were the odds? "I guess… I'll see you around."

"Yeah. Let's not go eight years without seeing each other again." He held out his hand. "To put it another way… it was nice to see you, even if our reunion was brief."

I ignored Trevor's hand, instead wrapping my arms over his shoulders. He froze for a moment, but when I leaned my cheek against his chest, I felt his breath release against my hair. He patted my back a little awkwardly, and when I backed away from him, his cheeks were pink again and his lips were pursed tightly.

"Bye, Trevs."

_Bye, Serena!_

"Goodbye, Serena!" he called, and I vanished through the sliding doors into the perfect oblivious world awaiting me.

* * *

"All right, good. Tilt your head up. Perfect, Serena, perfect. Keep it just like that!"

It was, admittedly, hard to accept this praise while water was dripping down my face and into my eyes, especially with my head tilted like this. I wasn't sure why the director of the shoot had decided to set the scene in the rain, where my hair—although styled—was sticking to my forehead and water was flowing into my agape mouth and making me cough every couple of minutes.

Not to mention that the whole reason we were doing the shoot, the clothes, was matted down. The dress they had given me was sticking awkwardly to my legs, and someone had to come over periodically to give me a new version of the same dress just to get a better image. It seemed too much trouble for what it was worth.

Ah, yes… work. Boutique Couture, the high-end store in Lumiose City, had asked me several years ago to be a model for their line of women's clothes. Somehow—and I wasn't quite sure how—I had become an image of "style" over the years shopping there, and someone somewhere had seen me and liked what they saw.

So, for years, I had been modeling their clothes in front of huge cameras and flashing lights and tons of people. Honestly, I didn't really like it that much, especially since it kept me so busy that I couldn't battle anymore. But I didn't have the guts to quit. In a world where things kept getting more expensive, I kind of needed the money. And I got to keep every outfit that I wore from the shoots, which was a nice benefit.

I wasn't sure I wanted to keep these soaked dresses, though.

Anyway, I had ended up in Hearthome because Boutique Couture had just opened a branch in Sinnoh. The Pokémon Contest building had been reserved for my team and me for the whole day, and I had even met the gym leader of Hearthome. I supposed I should have been thankful for the opportunity, but it was really just more trouble than it was worth to put on a face.

"All right, you're beautiful, Serena! Turn off the rain!"

I sighed in relief as the water stopped falling on me, and I pulled my hair back and gave it a squeeze, watching as droplets of water poured off the end. Several makeup artists ran over to me and wrapped some towels around me, ushering me to a chair in my waiting room. I barely had time to breathe before they were blow-drying my hair and reapplying waterproof makeup.

"Here's the next set," my manager, Peter, told me as he walked into the room, holding up my next outfit in the mirror behind me.

Except it wasn't really an outfit. I stood up, much to the dismay of my makeup artists, and grabbed the clothes from Peter. He smirked when I looked at him in horror. "Really? _This_? I've never been a… a… lingerie model before," I said in hushed tones, sure that my face had turned red in embarrassment. "I'm supposed to come out in just a bra and underwear in front of all these people?"

"It's a big step for you, I realize, but it's perfectly reasonable. You're twenty-three now. You're a mature young lady who has been seen as an innocent little girl for the past four years modeling with us. It's time for you to step out of your comfort zone and show the world that you're not a little girl anymore. I approved this because I thought it would be good for you," Peter explained.

I wanted to cry, not like a mature young lady but like a little girl. "Without asking me about it first? I don't think I can walk out in front of everyone like this."

"Just pretend you're in a bathing suit," Peter suggested, and he waved and started walking away. "Be ready in five."

"That doesn't make me feel any better!" I called, sighing when he just waved again and shut the door behind him.

I slumped down in my chair again, my makeup artists silent as they continued to fix me up. This was awful. The only problem I _didn't_ have with modeling in the past was the selection of clothes. I liked most of the outfits they had planned for me, and when I first started off, I was allowed to approve the selections before I agreed to a shoot. Eventually, when I became more proficient and approved most selections, Peter started doing it for me.

"You're all done, Serena."

I looked in the mirror, shaking my head at the fake eyelashes and extravagant eye shadow and layered, caked on foundation. "Could you give me a moment to change?"

The makeup artists all fled the room, shutting the door loudly behind them. I sighed, staring into the mirror again. Was this really worth it? I kind of liked being a kid, even if I was too old to do that anymore. There weren't any responsibilities, no expectations that I would never be able to reach. But this…?

I stripped out of all of my clothes and pulled on the underwear first. It fit snugly on my hips, lacey and scratchy. The bra was worse. It fit fine, but it was uncomfortable and pushed my breasts up too much. Why me?

I pulled a robe on from the coat hook on the back of the door and wrapped it around myself before walking back out to the set. Peter rolled his eyes when he saw me, and I blushed again, dodging his eyes and heading over to the director of the shoot. The director, at least, didn't make any note of the robe upon seeing me.

"Perfect, perfect. Here, go stand right over there, and my lovely friends will get some extra makeup on you," he said, pointing to the new set. There was just a green screen and a green floor, no additional props for me to hide behind. Crap.

I was swarmed again once I made it to the floor, thrown into a pair of stiletto heels and ripped from my robe. I was tickled with makeup brushes along my stomach and chest, my skin painted a little darker to match my face, I was sure. And once all of the artists stepped away from me, it was just me, a whole lot of skin, and two dozen people watching.

"Just do what you know and do so well, okay, Serena?" the director called, and I nodded, feeling my throat begin to close. This was awful already. I was confident but not _this_ confident.

I had no choice. Over the years, I had perfected my façade. So, I put my hands on my hips, tilted my head slightly, and stood with my legs apart. Everyone in front of me faded away, like it was just the camera and me. I could hear directions to move this way and look that way, whispers of awe from Peter, whose voice I could hear from anywhere, and demands of silence from some other viewers.

But then I heard another voice, one that was only slightly familiar to me now. "What's going on? No contests today?" the voice asked, and everything came flooding back to me at once.

No, no, no, no. He was _not_ standing there…

It was too late. Our eyes met, my heart beating nervously. I turned as quickly as I could, running off the set and grabbing my robe. When I turned back around, he was gone, and I could see the light from the outside pouring in as he left the building.

_Where is everyone?_

"Hold on, there, Serena," the director called as I ran past, a feat in stilettos, but I didn't stop. I pushed the double doors open and squinted as I was hit with brighter light than the ones inside. Holding my arm above my head to block the sun, I glanced around impatiently and spotted a shadow disappearing out of view past the building.

"Wait! Trevor!" I shouted, walking carefully down the stairs and then running again towards him. When I caught up to him, I grabbed his hand, tugging him to a stop. "Wait a minute, Trev."

"What are you doing?" he asked, but he didn't turn to face me.

"I don't usually—"

He turned his head just slightly so I could see a grin on his lips, his face flushed red. "You're a model. That's really impressive, Serena. You should get back to work, though. It was my mistake walking in and interrupting."

Of course he would be so mature about this. I was the one being childish.

"They can wait. The show doesn't go on without me." I smiled, but when I realized I was still holding onto his hand, I dropped it and backed away. "Sorry. But, um, if you don't mind my asking, what _were_ you doing there?"

"Oh." He turned around to face me now, and I couldn't miss his subtle sigh—relief, perhaps, that I had more clothes on than before, even if barely. "I've been volunteering at the Pokémon Contests since I've been in Hearthome. It's slightly selfish of me, but people usually bring in rare Pokémon. I get some good data, and I've been able to negotiate some trades to fill in the information on my Dex. Anyway, no one told me that there were no contests today."

Huh. What else could I expect, really?

"You better get back, Serena." He raised his hand, a brief goodbye, and turned around again. "See you."

_It's kind of sad. Serena was her only friend to come—only because she feels guilty, I'm sure._

My fingernails dug into my palms, and I stomped forward, my heels clicking against the pavement. "Hold up," I ordered, hurrying in front of Trevor and cutting him off. "What are you doing tonight? Is your offer for dinner still good?"

"S-sure," he said hesitantly, as if he didn't know the right answer.

"Good. Come back here at five."

* * *

"I just need to stop at a Pokémon Center first, okay?" I told Trevor when he showed up at five to meet me. I had happily changed back into my own clothes and added some additional layers on out of sheer embarrassment, despite the weather being too warm for it to be comfortable. I just hoped it didn't show.

He showed me the way, pointing out some of Hearthome's historical buildings as we passed. He wasn't all that familiar with the language, either, but he had picked up on some of it while he had been traveling and learned a bit about Hearthome through brief, simple discussions. At the very least, he knew the city now and could get around with more ease than I could.

When we made it to the Pokémon Center, I went straight to the PC. I knew that Trevor was probably confused, but I also knew that I owed him.

"Here you go," I said once I logged off the PC. "Take these."

Trevor's eyebrows raised as I held out several Poké Balls to him, his gaze flickering between them and my eyes. "What…?"

"Zygarde, Mewtwo, Zapdos, and Yveltal," I told him, shaking them in my hand to draw his attention back to them. "You said that there were some Pokémon that you haven't encountered, and I'm willing to bet that these are some of them. I've had good times, but… I'm sure that taking them will help you complete your Pokédex. I don't really battle much anymore, anyway."

He shook his head, holding his hands up in front of his chest. "I can't take these."

"Sure you can."

He shook his head once again. "To put it another—"

"No, no, no," I cut him off. "To put it any other way would be a farce. You _can_ take these, and you will. It's your goal to complete the Pokédex, is it not? You won't be able to do that without including the data for these Pokémon. Seeing them isn't enough—so don't give me that." He frowned, and I rolled my eyes. "At the very least, take them as an apology for yesterday. I was rude."

"Serena, this is really—"

"I'm starving. Are you starving? Come on," I interrupted again, and Trevor finally took the Balls and put them into the backpack he was always wearing.

With that, we were off, and the mood instantly felt less tense. He told stories as we walked of the places he had been, and suddenly his whole life seemed a lot more adventurous than mine ended up being. He had been all over—Unova, Hoenn, and now Sinnoh. He had caught hundreds and hundreds of Pokémon, climbed mountains, waded through snow and water—been up a volcano.

And I was standing inside wearing underwear for people I didn't know…

I couldn't say that modeling wasn't an honest living for some people. But the more Trevor talked about everything that he had done, and the more questions he asked about my modeling, the more it felt like it wasn't for me.

"You're really heading back to Kalos tomorrow?" he asked, poking at some vegetables on his plate during dinner, and I nodded. "I kind of miss it sometimes. My sister sends me messages on the Holo Caster a lot… keeps me updated on the hustle and bustle of Lumiose. But I've fallen out of touch with everyone else—even Tierno. You were close with Calem and Shauna. Do you talk to anybody anymore?"

That was the question I had been trying to avoid all along, wasn't it? It hit me like a mega punch to the gut, and I lowered my fork to my plate and patted my lips with my napkin.

"Not really. I wasn't as close with Tierno as you were, so we fell out of touch first. I used to see Calem quite a bit, but we stopped talking…" I trailed off, staring at my almost-empty plate.

"And Shauna?"

_Serena? You were a good friend to her…_

Trevor… had no idea. He didn't know. He hadn't come, after all, but I thought that maybe… Well, it was the reason why I had stopped talking to Calem, after all. He hadn't come, either, but he at least _knew_ about it, which made it all the more horrible to me. I had been the only one of us to show up that day.

But I wasn't a good friend, either. Maybe Calem had known that.

"I'm not feeling that well," I said, a little unsure about whether I should shed light on what happened. The voices were all talking again.

"Oh, is the food not agreeing with you?"

I shook my head. "No, it's my head. Excuse me for a moment."

I stood up, retreating to the bathroom at the back of the restaurant. I grabbed onto the counter, staring at my made-up reflection in the mirror. This was a bad idea. I was better off just leaving things as they were yesterday. Who was I kidding? Trevor was an old friend—he was bound to ask about everyone some time. I should have been ready.

He deserved to know. This wasn't fair.

I walked back out of the bathroom and back to our table, but Trevor was already standing. "I took care of the check. We can head back to your hotel since you're not feeling well."

"You didn't have to—"

"It's okay," he assured me, but I frowned at him, anyway.

We walked back to the hotel quietly, and I was painfully aware of other couples walking down the street together and talking loudly. I had never been the least bit attracted to Trevor when we were younger; I had a crush on Calem for the longest time, but he always made it clear that we were friends—neighbors—and nothing more than that. But now… it wasn't just embarrassment from earlier making my cheeks burn.

And this, of course, made it all the more painful holding this secret—which really shouldn't have been a secret at all—inside of me.

"Can you, um, come in with me? I don't want to say goodbye just yet."

I pulled off my jacket when we got up to my room, my shoulders bare, and the morning came flashing back to me again. I hastily pulled it back on. Hell, it probably wasn't the first time he had seen a half-naked woman. There was no reason why this had to be a big deal.

"I have some pain relievers," Trevor said suddenly, swinging his backpack to the floor and pulling a zipper. He kneeled down beside it as I sat down on the bed. "For your headache…"

"Trevs…"

He pulled out two bottles of pills, holding them up at me. "Which would you prefer?"

"Trevor."

He lowered the bottles to the floor, looking up at me. I didn't say anything for a moment, instead pulled my legs up onto the bed and hugged them against my chest. Finally, I muttered, "Shauna is dead."

So many emotions passed through his face at once. There was a wave of surprise, my words hitting him as heavily as his had at dinner. Then, concern swept through his eyes—concern, I thought, for me. He was always the smartest one in the group; I would bet that he saw right through me now. The headache was just psychological.

And then he laughed. It was just a chuckle, the beginning of doubt. "You're joking."

"Shauna is dead," I repeated, this time a little more clearly, and any hint of amusement vanished from his expression. "She's been dead for several years. The last time I saw her… it was a Friday in October. I promised that I was going to go exploring on Route 17 with her the following week at 10 o'clock. But something came up at work suddenly, and I couldn't go. I couldn't get in contact with her, so I assumed that she would just go home if I didn't show up. But she didn't, and a storm came…"

Horror now. "You're serious."

"I was the only one of us to show up at the funeral. Calem didn't come, Tierno didn't come… you didn't come. And I… I get it, you didn't know." I paused, everything rushing back to me. "But everyone was talking and talking, and word got out that I was supposed to be there with her. They just kept saying that I was lucky to be alive and the only reason I came to her funeral was because I felt guilty—because it was the only explanation they could begin to make for why none of her other friends were there."

"I would've gone if I knew," Trevor assured me, and I smiled weakly at him. I knew he would. He was a good guy.

"I believe you. But at the time—up until now, really—I thought you did know and chose not to come." I put my legs back down, falling back against the comforter of the bed. "I've been hearing all of these voices in my head since I met you yesterday—hers, all the people at the funeral. It's been a long time since I heard them. But you brought them all back again."

He nodded, pieces falling into place in that brilliant mind of his. "That was why you didn't want to talk to me." He pushed himself to his feet, the bottles of pills still in his hands. "Maybe I should just leave, then. If seeing me brings back painful memories for you, then I can't stay."

I swallowed, looking away as he tucked the bottles back into his bag and swung it over his shoulders. "Okay," I finally agreed, sitting back up on the bed. "Thanks for dinner."

"Well, then… bye."

I stood up and watched as he left the room, the door slamming shut behind him. I walked towards it, grabbing the door handle and pulling it down. When I opened the door, however, stepping out into the bright hallway, it was empty in both directions. How long had I been standing and staring at the door?

Hurrying back into my room, I dug through my purse for my Holo Caster and selected Trevor's ID. "Those memories _are_ painful," I said into the device when he didn't answer, "but… isolating myself from everyone and everything—hiding in work that I don't even _enjoy_—isn't going to make them go away. And I can't isolate you just because I've been unable to get a grip on myself. I just found you again."

I snapped the Holo Caster shut, holding it carefully in my hands as I waited for a message to be sent in return. I waited and waited and waited, and nothing came. So, when the sun rose the next day, I continued on with the life I knew before now.

* * *

"Serena. Yoo-hoo, Serena!"

I blinked, the scene in front of me crashing through the haze. I glanced down at the portraits on the table and wondered who that pretty girl was. It surely wasn't me. Yeah, maybe the body was mine, hidden beneath those layers of makeup that they added to my flesh—modified by that push-up bra to show more than I had. And, sure, maybe the face was mine, too. But those eyes… I wasn't sure those were mine at all.

"These photos have been a huge success in Sinnoh in the two weeks since print, so we decided to add them to the advertisements in several big-name magazines. You'll be all over the place. No one is going to be looking at you like a little girl anymore, little lady," Peter announced, slapping a hand down on the table.

"They're hollow," I said quietly, and Peter raised his eyebrows.

"What was that, dear?"

"They're hollow," I repeated more loudly. "These pictures are hollow. There's no emotion in them. It's a girl in her underwear. Yeah, maybe it's a beautiful shot, maybe it's a beautiful girl, but there is absolutely no depth here. This is a girl who had to shut everything out in order to take this picture, and it came out hollow."

Peter laughed, sliding the pictures back to the pile he had in front of him. "You're a doll, Serena. The emotion isn't hollow—it's raw. You're the girl who's worried about an upcoming date but confident about her body and what he'll find. You're the girl who's going to devour that man later that night. That's what I see."

I stared at Peter in disgust, shaking my head and rising to my feet. "No. I'm the girl who let everything slip away from her and hasn't yet managed to pick up the pieces. There's nothing sexual about this picture—there's nothing at all in it."

But Peter just waved his hand, dismissing my point. "Honey, the whole point of this shot was to sexualize your image. To say that there isn't any sexual about it would be immature. And you're not that girl anymore, right, Serena?"

His gaze was hard on mine, and I looked down at the picture on top of the pile again. No matter what he said, I couldn't see what he saw. Either he was distorting the image in a disturbing way, or I was distorting it. All I knew was that one of us was in the wrong, and I was fairly certain that I saw everything about that girl now.

"I must apologize—"

"No worries, Serena."

"—but I'm quitting."

Peter raised his eyebrows and then laughed, much like Trevor had when he dismissed my assertion that Shauna was dead. "Oh, Serena. You have a contract. You can't quit."

"Then sue me. I don't care. You have those photos and the rights to the rest of them. But I'm done modeling. I didn't like it before I became 'more mature', and I don't like it now. I want to go on adventures again and… and challenge the new Elite Four again. I want to do something _fun_ with my life." I smile, the possibilities bringing life back into the room. "So, go ahead and sue me. I quit."

I grabbed my purse, slamming the door shut behind me as I exited the room. I could hear Peter calling for me to come back, but I kept walking, my heels clicking against the tiled floor. And when I walked outside, the balmy summer air hit me like a refreshing change of atmosphere. The city never felt so welcoming.

It was as I was walking through the streets that I remembered Trevor. His house was just up the road—I wondered if his parents ever came back or if his sister ever left. What was his world like now?

Reaching into my purse, I retrieved my Holo Caster. It was then that I noticed an old message from a couple of weeks ago—the day I had left Hearthome, in fact. Had it been that long since I last checked it?

I opened it, and a hologram of Trevor shot up in front of me. I stopped walking, instead pulling myself against one of the many buildings on the side of the road. "You're probably on your way home now. I just wanted to let you know that I got your message. I'm sorry that I wasn't there. I can't put that any other way, so… just know that I wish I had been—for you. It was a tragic accident. Don't blame yourself anymore."

The message cut off, and Trevor disappeared back into the tiny device. I played it once more… just because. By the end of it, a tear had dripped down my cheek and onto the Holo Caster, disrupting the image and making him fade away.

"Trevor," I whispered, wiping my eyes.

I selected his ID, and there was a quiet buzzing as it checked if he was available. I was about to give up, to not send a message because I didn't know what I was going to say, anyway, when his hologram appeared in front of me again. He looked a little surprised to see me, as if he hadn't seen who was messaging him.

"Trevor!"

"Serena…"

"I got your message, too," I said quickly, perhaps a little too quickly. "Sorry. I, um…"

"Wait!" he called as I went to reach for the button to end the message. Even if he couldn't see exactly what I did, he still knew. "I'm in Lumiose temporarily visiting Professor Sycamore. Where are you? Still in Kalos?"

I nodded. "I'm in Lumiose, too. Right now, can you…"

"Yeah, meet me at Centrico Plaza in five minutes. Near Estival Avenue."

The hologram cut immediately, and I threw my Holo Caster in my bag and sprinted. A couple of taxis and cars honked as I ran across the road, and I waved apologetically as I passed by. I could see the top of the tower from where I was, just a kilometer or so away…

My breath was uneven when I stopped, and I put my hands on my knees to help myself recover. A couple of concerned passerbys checked with me to make sure I was all right, and I nodded, unable to speak. I couldn't speak… couldn't get my mouth to work anymore. All of my words were going to be used up soon.

"Serena."

I stood up straight again, hurrying towards my old friend and wrapping my arms around him. When I looked up at him, I noticed quickly that his hair had gotten a little bit longer in the two weeks since I had seen him, and his bangs covered his eyes just slightly. It reminded me a little bit more of the old Trevor I knew.

"I quit my job," I told him, and I could tell he was trying not to smile. "Like… two minutes ago. I saw the photos from the shoot that you interrupted—those, um, lingerie photos—and I just… hated them. So, I told my manager that I was done modeling and to sue me if it was an infringement on my contract."

"You told him that?" he asked nervously.

"Yeah. I'm not afraid to fight for myself anymore, and I haven't felt that way in a long time. I'm pretty sure it was the moment that I saw you again and all those horrible memories came rushing back that I starting fighting again. Because, honestly, it was like you had revived from the dead. You were as gone as Shauna," I told him. "And if you can come back, why can't I?"

I didn't want to be the hollow girl in those pictures: a shell of a person. I wanted to be like Trevor—go on adventures, travel the world, fill that Pokédex that I had sitting in a drawer somewhere in my house. If a picture was worth a thousand words, what was a real person worth? What could I become once I filled myself?

"I'm going to train. I'm going to challenge the Elite Four again, and then I'm going to visit every other Pokémon League I can get to," I decided aloud, and Trevor grinned. I thought about that Holo Caster around his neck, wondered if my message was still saved on it. "But, if it's okay with you, I want to keep in touch… talk every day, see each other as often as we can."

"Okay," he agreed. "When do you start?"

"Right now." I stood on my toes and brushed my lips against his cheek, a quick kiss to move myself forward. "I'll see you soon."

He stood frozen for a moment, but his expression softened as the shock passed. "Yeah," he said. "See you soon."

* * *

**Author's Note:** Here you are, my dear readers. My first XY fanfiction. I've played through Y twice now (I'm obsessed with buying clothes, which is SO not me in real life), and I just thought Trevor was the nicest friend character in the game. I'm not really sure who I ship as an OTP just yet, though. I'm thinking MAYBE Siebold/Serena. Expect one of those fics in the near-ish future.

Anyway, apparently the Trevor/Serena pairing is called Vanivilleshipping, which I don't really understand (I don't mean offense to the person/people who created the name, I'm just confused by it). That seems a more reasonable name for Calem/Serena. Trevor's from Lumiose, whereas both Serena and Calem are from Vaniville. I don't know if it's official or anything—it's just what I've seen.

Enough of my blabbering. I hope everyone had a splendid New Year, and I wish you all the best for 2014.


End file.
